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| - Fact Check: Deepfake of India Today anchor, Elon Musk used to dupe people
There are obvious clues that point out that this is a scam which has nothing to do with either Elon Musk, PM Modi, or Rahul Kanwal.
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India Today Fact Check
This is a deepfake video. The original Elon Musk video was about his meeting with PM Modi in 2023.
Get-rich-quick schemes on social media promoted through deepfakes are one of the most commonly used tactics by scammers. Case in point, here’s a video of India Today news director Rahul Kanwal talking about an investment platform created by billionaire Elon Musk. It goes on to claim that even Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi allegedly uses it.
“Indians are in shock. Narendra Modi is secretly making millions of rupees per month using a financial programme created by Elon Musk for all residents of India,” says the deepfake version of Rahul Kanwal, before the video switches to the owner of X, Tesla, and SpaceX.
Deepfake Musk says that he created this programme to liberate millions of Indians from “financial struggles and physical labour”, adding that a Rs 21,000 investment yields about Rs 8 lakh per week — with some even earning Rs 30 lakh. How do you earn big bucks like this? Deepfake Musk claims you need to do nothing. All you have to do is register and wait for a “confirmation call” and then the programme allegedly does all the work for you. He also thanked PM Modi and Nandan Nilekani for helping him create the platform.
This ridiculously obvious deepfake has been viewed almost five lakh times. But in fairness to its viewers, many in the comments pointed out this was an obvious scam.
There are obvious clues that point out that this is a scam which has nothing to do with either Musk, Modi or Rahul Kanwal.
First and foremost, Rahul Kanwal’s voice in this video sounds nothing like his actual voice.
Second, his deepfake was most likely made using footage from this India Today news report.
The show, “Operation Digital Arrest: India Today Exposes Digital Arrest Scam With Proof” was aired by India Today on television and various digital platforms on October 28. India Today's Special Investigation Team uncovered a digital fraud scheme involving fake couriers, fake cops, and fake government officials.
Third, the Elon Musk videos where he is talking to reporters and where he’s seen interacting with PM Modi are from June 2023. The two met in New York during PM Modi’s three-day visit to the United States. After the meeting, Musk expressed his desire to visit India and also called himself a "fan of Modi". You can see an India Today report featuring the original video of Elon Musk speaking and interacting with PM Modi below.
So, this is clearly a scam being advertised through deepfakes of Rahul Kanwal and Elon Musk. Surprisingly, when you click on the link accompanying the video, you’re redirected to mosostats.com, a website that lists tech conferences in India in 2024-25.
Clicking on any of the listed events redirects you to principal.dev, a website that sells euro 999 “masterclasses”.
These kinds of deepfake-powered schemes and scams are a dime a dozen. Here are a couple of stories featuring Mukesh Ambani’s deepfakes. And this is also not the first time India Today reporters and anchors have been deepfaked. A deepfake of India Today anchor Rajdeep Sardesai promoting a miraculous hypertension drug was once widely shared. On another occasion, Aaj Tak's Anjana Om Kashyap was similarly deepfaked.
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